SUSEP publishes CNSP Resolution No. 496/2026 on property and casualty insurance contracts

The regulation implements Law No. 15,040/2024, repeals CNSP Resolution No. 407/2021 (P&C Insurance Covering Large Risks), and establishes general rules, specific provisions, and a transition timeline for the market.

CNSP Resolution No. 496, dated August 17, 2026 (“Resolution No. 496”), which sets forth the general characteristics of property and casualty (“P&C”) contracts and specific rules for seven groups of insurance lines, was published in the Federal Official Gazette on August 18, 2026. The regulation entered into force on the date of its publication and implements, at the regulatory level, Law No. 15,040/2024 (the “Insurance Contract Law” or “ICL”).

Resolution No. 496 applies to the drafting, structuring, commercialization, performance, and operation of all P&C insurance contracts (Article 3), without reproducing the former regulatory distinction between mass-market insurance and large-risk insurance. It also equates insurance cooperatives with insurers for its purposes (Article 2) and assigns to the Superintendence of Private Insurance (“SUSEP”) the authority to issue supplementary regulations and supervise contractual documentation (Articles 51 and 52).

The regulation had been anticipated by the market since the publication of Public Consultation No. 10/2025 in November 2025. Several aspects of the public consultation were modified, most notably the repeal of CNSP Resolution No. 407/2021, which created and governed P&C Insurance Covering Large Risks (“Resolution No. 407”).

Below are the key aspects of the published regulation.

1. Single Contractual Regime: Resolution No. 496 establishes a common baseline for P&C insurance contracts, including rules on contractual conditions, formation, evidence, amendment, termination, renewal, interpretation, notices, and claims, all of which must be incorporated into P&C insurance products.
2. Repeal of Resolution No. 407 (Large Risks): Article 53 of Resolution No. 496 expressly repeals Resolution No. 407. The rationale is set out in the opinion (CNSP Opinion No. 1) submitted to the CNSP members for approval of the new resolution. According to the opinion, the Insurance Contract Law adopted a unified regime for insurance contracts, establishing a basic framework of rights and obligations that also applies to larger risks. Under this interpretation, Resolution No. 407, by presuming parity between the parties and limiting regulatory intervention in the design of “large-risk” products, would be incompatible with the law. The opinion also highlights technical and economic asymmetries in the market, the use of standardized clauses, and eligibility criteria that could capture companies that would not otherwise be regarded as large enterprises under other economic benchmarks. At the same time, the proposal incorporated into Chapter III of Resolution No. 496 specific provisions applicable to insurance products with greater technical and economic complexity, previously contained in Resolution No. 407, without extending those rules to other insurance lines.

3. Specific Provisions for Insurance Lines Previously Classified as Large Risks: Chapter III regulates seven groups of insurance lines, which are the same as those provided for under CNSP Resolution No. 407: Oil Risks; Named and Operational Risks with a Maximum Guarantee Limit (“LMG”) exceeding BRL 15 million; Global de Bancos (Bankers Blanket Bond); Aviation Risks; Marine Risks; Domestic and Export Credit Risks for Legal Entities; and Nuclear Risks. For these insurance products, claims adjustment and settlement periods may reach up to 120 days.

Although the regulation retained the requirement of a Maximum Guarantee Limit (“LMG”) greater than BRL 15 million for Named and Operational Risks insurance, it eliminated the general classification regime based on financial criteria established under Resolution No. 407, no longer considering parameters such as total assets exceeding BRL 27 million and annual gross revenue exceeding BRL 57 million for classification as “large risks”.

4. Claims Adjustment and Settlement: With respect to the criteria for applying periods longer than 30 days, which may extend up to 120 days for more complex claims adjustment and settlement procedures, Articles 28 and 29 largely replicate the framework already established by the Insurance Contract Law. For the insurance lines regulated in Chapter III, the regulation expressly permits claims adjustment and settlement periods of up to 120 days (Articles 28 and 29, Paragraph 2).

However, the possibility of applying such extended periods to other insurance products involving greater complexity in claims assessment remains unregulated. Under specific regulations, SUSEP may authorize periods exceeding the ordinary timeframe, subject to a maximum limit of 120 days (Articles 28, Paragraph 1, and 29, Paragraph 1). Although Resolution No. 496 preserves this possibility, as authorized by the Insurance Contract Law, neither the criteria for identifying such insurance products nor the procedure for qualifying under this exception has yet been established.

Claims adjustment and settlement reports, together with their annexes, constitute documents common to the parties and will be subject to supplementary regulation by SUSEP (Article 30). Although the public consultation established minimum reporting requirements and granted interested parties in a claim (insureds, beneficiaries, and, where applicable, injured third parties) the right to obtain such reports upon request within a maximum period of 10 days, those provisions were removed from Resolution No. 496. The regulation merely provides that claims adjustment and settlement reports must objectively describe the criteria and rationale underlying decisions to accept or deny coverage, as well as the amount of indemnity payable (Article 4, items XXIX and XXX).

5. Product Registration: The public consultation required the electronic filing with SUSEP of general, special, and specific conditions. Resolution No. 496 went further and expressly provides that, in addition to contractual conditions, any conditions drafted and negotiated on a customized basis to meet the specific needs of the insured or beneficiary must also be registered prior to commercialization, even if they are not formally designated as “specific conditions,” in accordance with criteria and procedures to be established by supplementary regulation.

This change may create a significant operational burden and run counter to the purpose of such specific provisions, which are typically negotiated on a case-by-case basis and frequently contain solutions tailored to particular types of risks. Commercially sensitive information may therefore become subject to a formal registration requirement that did not previously exist.

During the rulemaking process, stakeholders proposed removing this provision, arguing that requiring the registration of customized conditions could create substantial operational challenges, particularly because the current Electronic Product Registry (REP) was not designed to accommodate individually negotiated clauses, which often contain sensitive or confidential information. It was also argued that the requirement could impose burdens incompatible with the negotiation dynamics of large-risk insurance. Nevertheless, the Reporting Commissioner concluded that such challenges could be addressed through future supplementary regulation and system enhancements, and therefore maintained the obligation to register individually negotiated conditions. Accordingly, the practical impact of the measure will depend on how SUSEP regulates registration procedures, the treatment of sensitive information, and access to registered documents, as referenced in Article 11, Paragraph 2.

6. Formalization of the Insurance Proposal: Resolution No. 496 maintains the principle that the formation of an insurance contract results from acceptance of the proposal. The proposal may be submitted by the insured, the policyholder, the insurer, or their representatives, including through an insurance broker. The regulation also clarifies that a request for quotation does not constitute an insurance proposal, although information exchanged during the pre-contractual phase becomes part of the contract ultimately executed (Articles 12-14).

7. Amendment of the Policy and Issuance of Endorsements: Any amendment to the policy requires the submission and acceptance of an amendment proposal, except in the case of group insurance products subject to specific regulation. The contract is deemed amended upon acceptance of the amendment proposal, even if its effects take place at a later date (Articles 16 and 17). The corresponding endorsement must be issued and made available to the insured within the regulatory period of up to 30 days, in line with the rules applicable to the formalization of insurance contracts. Accordingly, contractual amendments do not arise merely from the issuance of an endorsement, but rather from the agreement of the recipient of the amendment proposal.

8. Renewal and Termination: Automatic renewal requires maintenance of the same contractual conditions and the same coverage period originally agreed and may not be used to introduce contractual amendments. If the insurer intends to amend the contract or does not intend to renew it, it must notify the insured at least 30 days before expiration of the policy period (Article 19, caput and Paragraph 2, item I). Likewise, if the insured does not wish the policy to be automatically renewed, it must notify the insurer before the beginning of the new policy period.

In addition, insurers may not unilaterally terminate the contract except in cases expressly provided for by applicable law (Article 23).

In the event of consensual termination, insurers are generally entitled to retain the portion of premium corresponding to the elapsed period, together with acquisition expenses on a proportional basis (Article 24, sole paragraph). Conversely, where the insured risk ceases to exist or the insured interest is extinguished, the insured must be reimbursed for the portion of premium corresponding to the unexpired risk period, subject to proportional retention of acquisition expenses (Article 25).

9. Short-Term Table: Although Articles 24 and 25 address the proportional retention and reimbursement of premiums, Resolution No. 496 does not expressly refer to the traditional short-rate table, nor was such reference included in former SUSEP Circular No. 621/2021. The absence of a specific provision raises questions regarding the compatibility between the new legal framework, which is based on the temporal proportionality of premiums, and market practices historically adopted under short-rate methodologies that, although not establishing an exact proportion between premium and coverage period, are based on proportional criteria.

10. Notices Through Insurance Brokers: Article 22 provides that notices issued by insurers must be delivered through reliable means capable of evidencing receipt and may be sent to the insurance broker or the recipient’s representative, within the limits of their authority. Article 45 further provides that insurance brokers and representatives of the insured, the policyholder, or the beneficiary may act within the scope of the insurance contract, subject to the limits of their legal duties and powers of representation. Although Resolution No. 496 refers to the limits of representation, legal duties, and delegated authority, it does not specify how such authority should be evidenced. As a result, operational questions remain regarding mandates, documentary evidence, and the scope of communications delivered through brokers, particularly in more complex distribution arrangements.

11. Application of Brazilian Law: Resolution No. 496 reinforces the trend already reflected in CNSP Resolution No. 494/2026 of strengthening the application of Brazilian law to insurance transactions with a relevant connection to Brazil. Article 3 establishes the exclusive application of Brazilian law and regulations issued by the CNSP and SUSEP in the following situations: a) contracts entered into by an insurer authorized to operate in Brazil;
    b) where the insured or applicant is resident or domiciled in Brazil; or
    c) where the assets underlying the insured interests are located in Brazil.

The rule extends this approach to overall P&C insurance contracts in general, may affect international insurance programs and cross-border structures, and is likely to fuel discussions regarding the scope of the new provision and its interaction with Article 20 of Complementary Law No. 126/2007 and Resolution No. 494/2026 – which govern situations in which insurance may be procured abroad.

12. Effective Date, Transition, and Next Steps: Resolution No. 496 entered into force on August 18, 2026 (Article 54). Its contractual effects, however, were phased in under Chapter IV.

In practice, insurers and other market participants should, before January 5, 2027, complete an inventory of products and policy wordings, identify contracts entered into or renewed at each relevant milestone, plan product and systems adjustments, and monitor SUSEP’s supplementary regulations, particularly those relating to customized conditions and claims reports.

13. Main Practical Impacts for the Market: The expansion of registration obligations before SUSEP will now encompass products that were previously subject to the regime established by Resolution No. 407, as well as specific conditions. In addition, insurers will need to review their policy wordings to ensure compliance with the new contractual framework. Market participants will also need to monitor SUSEP’s supplementary regulations and the expected adjustments to the REP, SRO, and Open Insurance framework resulting from the elimination of the “large risks” regulatory category.

Access the client alert on Resolution No. 494/2026

Access the full text of CNSP Resolution No. 496/2026 (Official Gazette of the Federal Government)

Demarest’s Insurance, Reinsurance, Private Pensions, and Supplementary Healthcare team remains available to assist with portfolio assessments, policy wording review and adaptation, claims-related matters, and overall preparation for the new regulatory framework.